Numerous eye-catching trees and shrubs will now grace an otherwise unattractive interchange at Business 85 and I-585 as a tribute to the late textile magnate and Noble Tree Foundation founder Roger Milliken.

By LYNNE P. SHACKLEFORDlynne.shackleford@shj.com

Numerous eye-catching trees and shrubs will now grace an otherwise unattractive interchange at Business 85 and I-585 as a tribute to the late textile magnate and Noble Tree Foundation founder Roger Milliken.The project is near Milliken & Co. and one that Milliken, who was the company's longtime leader and chairman of the board until his death, had envisioned, said Bill Barnet of the Noble Tree Foundation. Milliken established the Noble Tree Foundation in 1999 to encourage plantings of enduring, beautiful trees.By the end of next week, 160 trees and more than 1,000 shrubs will be planted at the interchange. The trees include Hasse Magnolias, a variety of the popular tree that are very upright and narrow and grow to about 35 feet; Razzle Dazzle crepe myrtles, a dwarf variety that will bloom red in the summer; Yoshino cherry trees and Princeton American elms, said Stewart Winslow, horticulturist and project manager with Pacolet Milliken Enterprises Inc.Motorists will enjoy colorful trees during all seasons, said Mark Byington, a landscape architect who heads the Landrum office of Innocenti & Webel, a landscape architectural firm."Our hope was to have multi-seasonal interest, and I think by the spring, it will be eye-catching," Byington said.The project was Milliken's vision, and one that first started in 2007, but momentum slowed in 2008 when the economy collapsed, Barnet said. Milliken died in 2010, but the Noble Tree Foundation moved the project forward in the last couple of years, and the Spartanburg County Legislative Delegation was instrumental in having the interchange dedicated to Milliken, Barnet said. The dedication will take place after the project is completed."A lot of people have been involved throughout the entire process," Barnet said. "The goal, from the beginning, was to make the improvements with the money we had available, and what's been designed is a bold and attractive combination of trees and bushes on the landscape."The S.C. Department of Transportation approved the plansBarnet said the project is at the heart of what Milliken was known for: environmental stewardship.The project is funded with $138,136 in federal transportation enhancement funds, and the remainder is financed by the Noble Tree Foundation.